| Social skill deficits (e.g., withdrawn behavior) and excesses (e.g., aggressive behavior) are common behaviors displayed by children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), which can lead to decreased positive interactions with their peers. Several treatments have successfully increased appropriate peer-related social behavior in young children with ASD (e.g., peer-networks); however, these treatments have not always produced generalizable results across participants, behaviors, or settings. Functional analysis methodology is one strategy that has been successful in identifying the functions maintaining a variety of problem behaviors linked to robust treatments, and may show promise for identifying functions of peer-related problem social behavior.;The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the functional analysis methodology to identify the function of peer-related withdrawn and peer-related negative social behaviors in three young children with ASD. An additional purpose of this investigation was to determine if peers could implement the functional analysis methodology with adequate integrity.;Peers were included in the functional analysis conditions and provided participants with relevant reinforcement contingent on peer-related withdrawn and/or peer-related negative social behavior across all functional analysis conditions.;The findings indicated the functional analysis methodology was not successful in identifying a clear function for peer-related withdrawn or peer-related negative social behavior, singly, for any of the 3 participants. However, when rate per minute of peer related withdrawn and peer-related negative behaviors were combined and evaluated post hoc, a negative reinforcement function for 1 of the 3 participants was identified.;With the exception of one participant's peer delivery of consequences in the escape and tangible conditions and another participant's peer delivery of positive initiations in the free play condition, peers were able to implement the functional analysis procedures with adequate integrity. |
